In the past two weeks, the government of Canada has come under fire several times over its complete lack of effort when it comes to the protection of endangered species. The gap between what Canada says -- and what it actually does -- for conservation continues to widen, and it is wildlife who pays the price.

I worry a lot about how we don't understand nature anymore. Now I'm not talking about the value of nature or the importance of conservation. That worries me too, but what I'm talking about is the basic understanding of the plants and animals that co-exist with us. I'll call this nature literacy.

We have found that 86 per cent of species considered to be at risk of extinction in Canada are either deteriorating or failing to recover. Despite the fact that many of these species should be receiving protection, the government has largely failed to identify the critical habitat necessary for the species to recover, and as a result this habitat may be going unprotected. This is bad news for biodiversity.

Many of the stories told at the World Parks Congress will emphasize work in parts of the world struggling with fragmented landscapes, greatly depleted wildlife and ecosystems on the edge of collapse. But conservation in Canada is uniquely different.

Here in Canada, it's a luxury to not think about water. Most of us watch it come out of the tap and go down the drain without considering its source or destination. But many people in the world don't have taps or drains. In fact over 1.2-billion people experience critical water shortages. They think about water every day.

This Canada Day, I'm not only celebrating our country's beautiful natural places, which are like no other in the world. I'm celebrating the visionary Canadians who have believed in the importance of protecting the best of what Canada has to offer.

There are many reasons why nature conservation is important. We live in a vast and diverse country with habitats and rare species that need our help if they are going to survive. Nature and nature conservation are an important part of our Canadian heritage and our identity.

The rainbow was once widely distributed and common in many rivers and creeks in southern Ontario. Today it is extremely rare. While we did our part in obliterating the rainbow by polluting its river home, today, the number one threat to this species is invasive, non-native zebra mussels.

There is another reason why we cannot afford to take much longer to increase conservation and tighten the rules. One major logging company operating in the region is not a member of the Joint Solutions Project. Instead, TimberWest has a long history of opposing increases in conservation and undertaking extremely profit-driven logging operations in the southern-most portion of the Great Bear Rainforest with very little remaining old-growth.

"The government has sent a clear signal that it is open to having pipelines cut through our globally renowned protected areas," said Al Martin of the B.C. Wildlife Federation. "The Act will now allow industrial expansion in some of B.C.'s most beloved parks, placing them at risk."

Despite the best efforts of citizens and watershed groups actively caring for their local waters across the country, we have no consistent way to measure water health. That leaves us in the dark, unprepared to do what's necessary to care for our waters. It leaves us without the information we need to understand the impacts and trade-offs of development decisions, restoration projects and legal reforms.

Improving the way we fish and grow seafood is critical to the survival of some of our planet's most threatened marine and freshwater species and environments. But a national sustainable seafood day is also a critical reminder that even through our everyday choices in what food we buy, we can have a profound impact on the future of life on our planet. And nowhere is that more true than at our fish counters.

Tourism in Canada is highly dependent on our parks and conservation areas. We would even go as far to say that our protected parks and conservation areas in Canada are the foundation of a successful future in tourism for Canada.

One year ago Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) announced its Forest Conservation Policy (FCP), immediately halting all natural forest clearance across its entire supply chain. Specifically, we outlined four key priorities for 2014 to engage our broader industry and other sectors to help accelerate the realization of zero deforestation.

If you are a wilderness lover, or an adventurer of any kind, Labrador should be on your list of "must sees." So much of Labrador's nature remains a mystery. It's not hard to see why the New York Times listed Labrador as one of four "Up-and-Coming" travel destinations in 2011, describing it as one of North America's last frontiers.

2013 was a big year for Canada's boreal forest. However, many of these stories remain unresolved. Here are the top 10 stories of 2014 that are most likely to have a huge impact in the boreal forest for years to come.

For those of us who are interested in the field of conservation biology, this time of year prompts us to be more thoughtful about lists of a different kind: the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada ceremoniously completes a review of (in overly simplified terms) Canada's endangered species list at the end of each year.

With much in the news these days about the troubles facing a prominent BC land trust, it is no surprise that people are raising questions about what the future might hold for other conservation areas and heritage sites, and for land trusts in general. How can we continue to have confidence in land trusts if the protection they promise appears to be fleeting?

Her name's Melissa Bachman. She kills wild animals on American TV for a living. Sometimes with a rifle, sometimes with bow and arrow. Then she killed a full-maned male lion, and posted a picture of herself, cradling her rifle, laughing triumphantly, while the once-magnificent lion sprawled dead at her feet. And all hell broke loose.

The changes we have seen more recently in our forests have not been caused by plate tectonics or long term climate cycles, but by me, by you, by us. We have converted almost 50 per cent of our planet's forests into croplands, ranches, plantations, subdivisions and highways.